Page 15 - DMEA Week 18 2020

DMEA
NEWS IN BRIEF
DMEA
Ethiopia procures extra fuel for emergency
The Ethiopian government has started the process of procuring 40,000 tonnes of benzene in response to the potential shortages that could be caused by the disruptions of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The Ethiopian Petroleum Supply Enterprise signed a deal two weeks ago for the supply of the oil from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), a state- owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates. The enterprise is negotiating with the company to ensure the delivery of the benzene by the end of May.
Although the order was made two weeks ago, the cost of fuel is going to be determined at the spot price when the fuel is procured, according to Tadesse Hailemariam, CEO of the Enterprise.
The estimated spot price for cargoes of 95 RON, a premium gasoline standard, for loading in Fujairah, UAE was $20.68 per a barrel on April 30 2020, according to S&P Global Platts, a provider of commodity data. Based on this price, Ethiopia would be paying approximately $7mn before shipping costs.
Haftar-affiliated militia
storm HQ of Libya’s Brega
oil refinery
Armed militants believed to be affiliated with one of the sons of eastern Libyan strongman General Khalifa Haftar, stormed during
the weekend the headquarters of Brega Oil Marketing in the eastern city of Benghazi, expelling the firm’s director, The Libya Observer reported on May 4.
The armed group replaced Brega Oil Marketing’s director Khairallah Al-Ubaidi, after reports that the manager supported efforts for a political agreement in restive Libya, rather than backing General Haftar’s announcement that his Libyan National Army (LNA) had accepted a “popular mandate” to rule Libya.
At the beginning of last week, General Haftar said that his army would take formal control of Libya, “answering the will of the people.”
Haftar launched in the spring of last year
a campaign to take Libya’s capital Tripoli.
In January this year, a group of paramilitary formations affiliated with Haftar’s LNA occupied Libya’s export terminals along with pipelines and fields. The blockade came amid continued fighting between the LNA, which
is loyal to the eastern Libyan government and the forces loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA), which is recognized by the
Week 18 07•May•2020
United Nations.
As a result of the blockade, Libya’s oil
production –which had stood at more than 1mn bpd at the start of January – has collapsed to less than 100,000 bpd.
Over the past month, Haftar’s forces have lost some ground to groups aligned with the GNA, and Haftar ordered his troops to halt operations during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The GNA rejected the unilateral ceasefire, saying it doesn’t trust the eastern military commander.
Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) said last week that as of April 28, oil production in the country was down to just 95,077 bpd.
The forced restriction of oil and gas production has caused Libya financial losses exceeding $4.35bnsince mid-January, said the NOC, calling again on “all parties to lift the blockade and re-start oil and gas production.”
NLNG making progress
towards $10bn Train 7
contract
The Nigerian LNG Limited has said it is making significant progress in activities, paving the way towards the formal award of engineering, procurement and construction contracts for its Train 7 project.
The NLNG announced in September 2019 that it had issued a Letter of Intent for the EPC contract to SCD JV Consortium, which is made up of Saipem of Italy, Japan’s Chiyoda and Daewoo of South Korea.
The company’s shareholders took the final investment decision (FID) on the project in December 2019, ten years behind schedule.
The Train 7 project aims to increase the company’s production capacity from 22mn tpy to 30mn tpy and will form part of the investment of over $10bn, including the upstream scope of the LNG value chain, according to the company.
Oman extends Muscat lockdown
Oman has extended the lockdown in place in the Muscat governorate for another three weeks, as the country’s COVID-19 cases continue to rise.
The extension will likely weigh down on fuel consumption, because of decreased vehicle use.
Oman’s Supreme Committee, chaired by interior minister Sayyid Hamoud bin Faisal al-Busaidi, said that the lockdown would continue until 10:00 Gulf Standard Time (GST) on May 29. People entering or leaving the capital will be required to pass security checkpoints. It said everyone is required
to “stick to measures of prevention from coronavirus disease, notably precautions of social distancing and avoidance of assembling or any gatherings.”
This is the second time that the authorities in Oman have extended the Muscat lockdown since it was introduced on April 10 for two weeks. The first extension was announced on April 21 and was set to last until 10:00 Gulf Standard Time (GST) on May 8.
Oman today reported 168 new confirmed coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours bringing the total number of cases to 2,903. The death toll from the outbreak remains at 13.
Omani fuel marketers hurt by pandemic’s impact in Q1
The Omani Sultanate’s three principal fuel marketing companies reported a dramatic decline in their net earnings for the first quarter of this year, attributable largely to the effects of a burgeoning economic downturn slump as well as to a general lockdown ordered by authorities with the aim of curbing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shell Oman Marketing Company’s (SOMC) net profit after tax for the
quarter ended March 31, 2020, fell 93% to OMR122,000, down from OMR1.775mn
for the corresponding period in 2019, the company said in initial unaudited financial results published last month. Revenues dipped 2.2% to OMR117.9mn this year, down from OMR120.5mn for Q1 2019.
Oman Oil Marketing Company (OOMCO), the biggest of the trio by market share, reported a 46.7% decrease in net profit after tax to OMR602,000 this past quarter, down from OMR1.130mn for the corresponding quarter of 2019. Total revenue of the group was lower by 6.8% at OMR131.752mn in Q1 this year versus, OMR141.390mn for Q1 2019.
Rounding off the list, Al Maha Petroleum Products Marketing Co announced a
steep 86% fall in net profit after tax for the first quarter at OMR137,000, down from OMR980,000 in Q1 2019. Revenue for the quarter also declined 10% to OMR100.459mn, down from OMR111.938mn for the corresponding quarter of 2019.
According to experts, the impacts are expected to be much more pronounced in the current second quarter following the adoption of full-blown pandemic mitigation measures, which have resulted in the curtailment of most local and international flights, while vehicular traffic has been reduced to a minimum. Motor and aviation fuels are mainstay revenue sources for fuel marketing firms in the Sultanate.
w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m
P15